Veiled
by daeneris
Summary: Lady Venera Bellmore's only ambition is to be recognized as heir of her home when she is betrothed to Robb Stark and sent off to Winterfell before the wedding and the title of heir is given to her father's bastard son. Jon Snow/OC and Robb Stark/OC. Cannon compliant. Slight love triangle. Please review and let me know what you think!
1. Chapter 1

The door to the second largest chamber in the castle noisily creaked open, immediately altering its occupant to the presence of someone there. Timidly, a man increasingly too old for his station, crept in. The room's owner did not make any moves to turn around, instead choosing to continue facing forward, her hand anxiously writing a letter on yellowing parchment

"What is it Pippa? I'm rather busy at the moment." The short clipped words flew out of the girl's mouth without a second thought, her attention never rising from the paper in front of her.

"Actually it is I, my lady." The wavering voice of the room's intruder countered back.

This was enough to get the woman being addressed to focus her attention onto her guest and turn her head towards him. Her dark eyebrows rose for just a sliver of a moment to indicate her surprise at her mistake before returning to their usually impassive state. The old man held in a forlorn sigh at the action but said nothing of it. The gesture was small enough that almost anyone else would have never noticed it. But Silas had known that face for years, and he was able to see the emotions that lay beneath it, regardless of the mask that tried to hide them.

"Well then what is it?" The woman asked, her voice a steady monotone and her dark eyes refocused on the paper.

"Your father." Silas began. This got her full attention as she slowly put down her quill and turned her body in the chair to face him. There was trepidation in her eyes now, a flicker that remained for such a time that Silas questioned whether she chose not to hide it at all or was unable to. "He is adamant in his decision as you know, and received the confirmation for his endeavors by raven early this morning."

What exactly Lord Bellmore's endeavors were did not need to be said ans a look of understanding flowed between the two participants. The lady to whom the plans pertained looked starkly at the floor in an attempt to regain her composure. Meeting the Maester's gaze again she coldly asked, "Does my father know that you're telling me this?"

A slightly abashed look crossed the old man's face. He had gone out of his way to inform the young Lady Bellmore of the events that have taken place revolving around her future, against the orders of her father and his counselors. Yet now she seemed almost to be accusing him of great treason.

"No, my lady. The counsel did not wish for you to be informed until it was absolutely required, but I felt you had a right to know." He said honestly. He need not tell her the reason why he defied the orders of his commanding lord. He left out that at each council meeting while the men were deliberating over the fate of the lord's only daughter he pictured the image of a small girl pounding her feet against the castle's stone floor as she ran through the ancient halls, desperate to get to whatever her destination was. The little girl still taking the time to whip her face around and fixate him with the largest beaming smile he had seen, deep dimples and dark flowing curls cascading around her.

It had been years since the Maester had seen that smile. She must have been a girl of only six or seven years to her then. The smile had faded alongside the rest of her when her lady mother had died. Consumed by a fever when the little lady was only one and ten. The Lady Elaeyne Bellmore had been a kind and caring woman, treating her only child, and the only child she would ever have, Verena, as the prized jewel she was. His little lady had parts of her that were very reminiscent of her mother, delicate and soft, until the grief had chipped them away like ice carving rock, leaving what was left behind hardened and severe.

"Thank you." Verena replied. She took a deep breath and readied herself to say more when another unassuming knock came at the door, before flying open outright.

"Lady Verena! You're – oh!" Pippa, Verena's handmaiden exclaimed running into the room before halting upon seeing that Verena was not alone. "I'm sorry my lady I hadn't realized that you would be having company.

"It's fine Pippa." Verena said dismissively, no longer looking at Maester Silas and instead at the mousy figure of her handmaiden and childhood friend. "What is it?"

"Your father requests your presence in the great hall." Pippa squeaked looking curiously at the Maester standing in the center of the room.

"It looks as though the time has officially come." Venera muttered a twinge of sarcasm playing on her lips as she looked ahead out the door of her chambers down the stone hallway. "Thank you Pippa." She responded absently not making eye contact with either of her guests as solemnly stepped out of her chair and walked out of the room.

As she left the room Maester Silas felt a twinge of sorrow in his chest. He tried not to think of the carefree child he had once taken care of, and how the gentle soul that had once resided in her body was torn out. He closed his eyes tightly blocking out the memories, though he could not escape the sound of a ringing childish laughter that was now all but forgotten.

* * *

Any courage that Verena had gathered on her walk to the great hall left her as she placed her hand on the large wooden doors leading to her father's hall. Pushing them open she was immediately met with the presence of her father only. She had been expecting other members of his council and felt herself being taken aback. Was this what he had planned? To try to appear intimate and caring as he told her that he was selling her life away.

"Verena." Lord Jorrel Bellmore greeted. His voice a deep baritone with little to no inflection that surprisingly reminded herself of her own. "Come sit."

"Father" Verena responded cordially back as she took a seat at the opposite end of the great hall table. "Pippa told me you wanted to see me."

"Yes obviously." Jorrel reprimanded dismissively. "Or else why would you have come."

"Obviously." Verena replied fighting not to look away from the stern features of her father's face. The years had aged him but in a manner that added to his appearance. His hair had turned grey and was cropped extremely close to his skull. His thin lips turned down into a scowl as he regarded her from underneath his harsh brow.

"Enough of these false niceties Verena. You're my daughter; we should be able to talk simply you and me. Man to man."

Her eyes flashed in a thinly veiled attempt at hiding her annoyance. "But I am not a man father. You know this, because it's what's gotten us into this situation and it's the reason why I'm here." Though there was hardly any inflection in her voice she knew her father would pick up the anger laced through her words. "I am your only child and I am a woman. Which leaves you without an heir and without a plan as for what you want to do with me."

"You are not my only child." Lord Bellmore harshly replied. He at least had the grace to look to the table instead of the eyes of his daughter and be faced with an exact reflection of his late wife's as he referenced his other children.

"I am the only true born." Verena combatted, her teeth grinding together so tightly she would be surprised if her father wasn't able to hear them from his place across from her. "I am the only child of you and your late lady wife and you would rather legitimize a bastard than name me as your heir."

"Ashton is my son, that is the only thing that matters"

"Your son with the name Stone." Verena hissed "The product of your tryst with a common whore while mother lay in your bed fevered and dying!"

"Enough!" Lord Bellmore yelled, slamming his fist down on the table. A wave of fear shot through Verena's veins. "Do not speak as though you know my actions better than myself."

"I know enough!" Verena retaliated her voice reaching a pitch so high she was sure the messenger ravens in the nearby barn would fly off. Taking in a shaky breath Verena tried to compose herself.

"Father." She pleaded. "Listen to me. My sons will be lords of Strongsong, your grandsons will be the lords of the second most powerful house in the East. You don't need to bother legitimizing Ashton. I am your heir."

"Your sons will be lords of Winterfell, the most powerful house in the North. If power is what you want then this is the way you will have it. Winterfell is greater than Strongsong by far. I don't understand why you're so insisting on having it anyway."

 _Because it is my home._ Verena thought to herself in a moment of vulnerability. She did not want to be heir for the power; she wanted it because it belonged to her. She was the only true born child. It should be hers, she grew up here and she watched her mother die here. _Because it is my home father_ she heard herself pleading, _because it is all I have ever known. Because I will not lose it to some bastard child when it belongs to me. I do not want to leave father, please do not send me away._

And yet she could not find it in herself to say any of those things, so she did what she has always done best; said nothing.

A shadow of a smile appeared on her father's stern face. "I do hope you understand Verena." Her father spoke, his words softened but his face did not. "This is what is best for you. It is what you want. You will see that."

She fixated her dark eyes on her father and said nothing. But she knew he was wrong. This was not what she wanted; he had never known what she wanted from the beginning.

"I know Silas has been telling you parts of our planning." Her father continued. "You're almost of age now and it is time for you to be wed. Now it is most advantageous that we-"

Her father continued speaking but his words were reduced to sounds of rushing water in her ears as Verena's heart sunk into her stomach. She could no longer will herself to listen and instead focused on the rapid beat of her pulse. Perhaps she would have cried, if she remembered how.

"Do you understand Verena?" The question reawakened her attention. She gave her father a dazed look that let him know that she hadn't been listening. In a rare moment of true gentleness her father sighed. His words were harsh still but began to somehow seem genuine. "Ned Stark has a son a little older than yourself. I've already written him and he agrees on the match. He was close to your mother's uncle Jon Arryn you see."

"When is the wedding?"

"Not for some time. A few months at least." A small sense of relief filled her body, until her father finished his sentence. "The Starks want you to foster at Winterfell until then. You'll leave as soon as possible for the north, I'd say be ready to leave in a weeks time. It'll give you a chance to get to know this Robb Stark boy anyhow."

Verena nodded, it will also get me out of the way that much faster, she couldn't help but think. She had nothing left to say. She was losing everything she had ever known and she had nothing to say to even try and stop it.

"May I be dismissed father?" She asked and left as soon as possible when her father nodded solemnly to her.

* * *

Thankfully her room was empty of Maesters and handmaidens when she returned to it. She curled into a ball on her bed and lay awake all night, thinking of her pending marriage to this Robb Stark and how it was the reason she had lost everything she cared for.


	2. Chapter 2

The week that her father had allotted her to get ready for her journey north had come and gone quicker than any week in Verena's life. She was fairly certain that all of the carriages were finishing being readied for the journey at this exact moment. She knew that she didn't have much time left. But she didn't know when she would be back to here, if she ever would be. She wished this moment would stretch into a thousand. She wasn't ready for any of this.

No one had been to the lord's chambers in years, that much was obvious from the thick layer of dust found on every piece of furniture. Her lord father no longer even slept in here. He probably chose the company of whore's beds over his own which was haunted with the memory of her dying mother, she thought bitterly.

It had been in this very room, in that very bed where her mother had died. Verena remembered clearly, watching her mother smile down at her one last time before asking for her to be taken out of the room. How she had fought against the members of the household who had come to see the Lady Elaeyne in her darkest hour. She screamed and fought and begged. She could still hear her mother's frail voice pleading with her one last time to go, before she tore out of the room tears streaming down her cheeks. She remembered how no one was able to find her for hours after her mothers death, until old Maester Silas found her curled up in a servant's cupboard gasping out dry sobs, no longer having any tears left to shed.

That was the last time that she had even ventured near this room. But this being perhaps her last opportunity to do so she had made her way back. The ornate portrait that hung on the far wall of the lord's chambers was the only reason she had come here. The painting depicted a young and extremely beautiful young woman. Her hair was the color of a midnight raven and her dark eyes twinkled as they creased into her face. Though a truly beautiful woman aesthetically, Venera found the woman's most stunning feature to be the wide smile painted on her face.

People used to say that Verena looked very much like her, until the grief hardened even the very features of her face.

Part of her found it foolish to even come here. There was nothing the portrait of her dead mother could offer her. It could not wrap its warm arms around her in a soothing embrace. It could not offer her the sage advice that she so desperately craved. It could offer her nothing but useless memories and pain.

Yet still she couldn't help but wonder. What would she have said? Would she have been happy for me as most mothers were? Or would she have fought for her only child's right to her home and her lands.

 _Would you have fought for me mother?_

Stepping away from the painting the door to the room opened suddenly, revealing old Maester Silas with an expression on his face more worn than Verena had ever seen.

"Your father is ready to leave." He said quietly. "He sent your handmaidens off to look for you. But I had a feeling that I might find you here."

"You always knew me too well Silas." Verena spoke softly, a shade of truth peaking out from inside her.

"Of course my lady." A slight shadow of a smile appearing on the old man's face. "It is my duty to serve the members of this house to the best of my ability. Yet it was hard not to care more about you my lady."

"And your darling mother as well." He said stepping in line with Verena and gazing up at the portrait. "She always was an incredibly kind woman, with a gentle heart. I see so much of her in your Verena."

 _You might have before._ She thought. _But now I am no longer like the woman she was. I have grown bitter and cold now, like the land I am being sent away to. What would she think of me now? What would she think of the woman I have become?_

"My lord father needs me." She spoke her voice returning to its usual tone of indifference. "I have kept him waiting long enough."

The maester's lips turned down as he let out a tiny sigh. He knew better than to push his young lady too much at one time.

"Of course my lady." He replied, "I will keep you well informed about our Strongsong. As long as these Starks allow you letters from an old Maester." A joking lilt appearing in his voice.

"I am certain they will allow me that much." A ghost of smile appearing on her face as she regarded her old childhood maester.

She willed herself not to think about how out of all the things she would miss about Strongsong, it would be him that she would miss the most.

* * *

The journey north had been longer and more strenuous than she had expected and the carriage she shared with her two handmaidens seemed to become smaller and smaller with each passing day. Her father had decided not to accompany her to Winterfell, telling her as she was leaving that he was staying with her bastard brother Ashton at Strongsong to take care of certain affairs. He promised that they would visit for the wedding, whenever a date for the event was arranged.

Her father's staying at Strongsong might have made her felt alone if it wasn't for the fact that she was certain she would've been lonely either way. How scared she was to be amongst these complete strangers. Her own dislike about her own situation hadn't left her time to think about how this Robb Stark may not even like her either, till her handmaidens spent the entirety of the journey chirping about the future lord of Winterfell.

"I heard the men in front say that we should be arriving to Winterfell any moment." Her second handmaiden Lolys exclaimed giddily.

Verena resisted the urge to roll her eyes as her other handmaiden Pippa retorted "From the way you're carrying on you'd think you're the one marrying him."

Verena pointed a sliver of a smirk in Pippa's direction as Lolys huffed. The carriage jerked forward causing each of the three girls to fall forward before returning to their original position with a great thud.

"I think we've stopped!" Lolys's cheerful attitude returning as if nothing was amiss. "I'll go see if we're there my lady."

As the blonde girl jumped out of the carriage Verena turned to Pippa a slight frown on her face.  
"I feel Lolys will be disillusioned upon her arrival to Winterfell." Verena said apathetically. "The north is cold and harsh and it is said that their people are even colder and harsher themselves."

"I fear my lady may be right." The meek girl agreed as the topic of their conversation returned.

"We're here my lady!" A huge grin appearing on the young girls face lighting up her light colored eyes. "The chamberlain says that Lord Stark is preparing his welcoming party and that we will all be properly introduced."

A jolt of fear shot through her as she realized that there was no more avoiding the inevitable. Her mother would have wanted her to be strong. Maester Silas would want her to be strong. She would suffer through this for their sakes.

* * *

She heard the horses of the dozens of men her father had required come on their journey ride ahead of her until finally the carriage was stopped one final time. Lolys shot Verena a look of excitement before she and Pippa first exited the carriage and stood by the side of it, to signal the arrival of their lady. Verena smoothed the intricate lace pattern on her green dress, it was one of the best she owned, being the second richest family in the east allotting her some luxuries. She stood up straight and composed her face to be a wall of stone. _I am Verena Bellmore of Strongsong._ Her House words rang in her head. _Fear Our Thunder._

As soon as she stepped out of the carriage she was met with the large garrison of Stark men with the members of the Stark family themselves standing at the front. Her dark eyes met Lord Stark first; she felt that he was the safest to look at. Though his large furs made him seem imposing she felt a certain type of kindness coming from him as he pressed his lips to her extended hand.

"My lady." Lord Stark spoke in a low solemn voice. A smile appeared on his weathered face as he regarded her. "It is our honor to host you at Winterfell."

"The honor is all mine Lord Stark." She replied delicately still avoiding looking at the other members of the Stark household for fear of seeing her betrothed.

"This is my lady wife Catelyn." Lord Stark said introducing the auburn haired woman next to him. Verena noted that she was a very beautiful woman with a hardened face making her appear strong and dutiful. Verena knew that Lady Stark had grown up in the Riverlands as a Tully; so surely she wasn't born with such a stern appearance. Had the north changed her so? Would being Lady of Winterfell have an equally drastic effect on changing who she was? Surely the North would not be able to turn her more severe.

"It is a pleasure to meet you Lady Verena." Lady Stark said a gentle smile on her face revealing a softness that must still linger inside her.

"It is a pleasure to meet you as well Lady Stark." Verena said with a slight bow of her head.

"These are our youngest sons Bran and Rickon." Catelyn introduced. Verena looked to the two small boys standing next to their mother, both heavily favoring their mothers coloring, the youngest of the two grabbing onto his mothers dress while the other smiled up at her politely. She felt her lips lift in a half smile in return.

"And our daughters Sansa and Arya." Verena turned to look at the two girls to the left of Lord Stark, carefully avoiding the eye of the eldest Stark boy who was standing between his lord father and his two sisters.

Verena was taken aback by the beauty of the eldest daughter, Sansa, she assumed. Though the redheaded beauty was a few years younger than Verena herself it was evident that she would grow into an extremely beautiful young woman. And from the look of the shy smile and polite curtsey she gave she seemed to have the grace that would be expected from a beautiful lady such as herself. While Sansa seemed to exemplify grace and southern beauty her sister Arya appeared to be the exact opposite. She had the dark Stark features of the north, seemingly the only one of the Stark children to favor their father rather than the Tully look of their mother. A lack of grace was evident to from the first word Verena heard out of the little girl's mouth.

"Who is she and why are we all greeting her?" The little girl implored to her eldest brother annoyance heavy in her voice. Verena heard a low chuckle that could have only come from Robb himself and still refused to look directly at him.

"I told you." Sansa said chastising her sister, the annoyance in the older girl's voice just as evident as in her younger sister's. "She's Robb's betrothed. They're to be married and she is to be his lady wife and the future Lady of Winterfell!"

"Sansa." Lord Stark interrupted gently. "That's enough." Verena couldn't help but silently thank Lord Stark in her mind, not wishing to hear the reminder of exactly why she was here any more than she had to. Turning his attention back to Verena lord Stark finished his introductions. "That leaves of course my eldest son Robb."

Verena finally forced herself to look at him. She kept her chin held high and her expression distant and unassuming. While she was indifferent on the outside she felt a small flutter deep in her stomach at the sight of him. He was just as handsome as Lolys had said. He was tall with a muscular and stocky build. His hair was a dark reddish brown, the color of russet and fell in thick curls. When she finally met his face she was taken aback by how blue his eyes were and by the polite smile on his face, presumably from him noticing her thorough examination of him.

"It is an honor to meet you my lady." He said politely, bowing before her.

"The honor is mine." She replied.

 **A/N: Hello everyone! I hope you enjoyed chapter two, now that I've finally got most of the introduction out of the way and Verena has finally met the Starks I can finally get to the good stuff in the story and eventually the Robb/OC and Jon/OC (don't worry the OC in both of those pairings in Verena herself) Sorry for the delay as well, I've been busy but will definitely update more quickly for this next chapters.  
** **Please please please leave me a review if you like it, that's the only way I know if you guys really like it and it makes me feel so good and want to update and write it even faster! So thank you!**


	3. Chapter 3

While the entire atmosphere of the North was foreign to her that part of Winterfell that felt the strangest was all of the people inside it. It seemed to bustle with noise and commotion and happiness. Never before had Verena been exposed to such an environment. The walls of Strongsong remained dim and silent; the only sounds ringing off of its ancient walls were her own solemn footsteps as she walked through the halls alone.

That was certainly not the case here, especially not at feasts. She couldn't even hear the words Lady Stark was saying to her as she stared wide eyed at all the people who came to feast in celebration of her arrival. Only when Lady Stark repeated her name a second time did she finally catch Verena's attention.

"I'm sorry my lady." Verena replied, a forced smile appearing on her lips as she tried to hide the waves of nervousness that she felt. "I was distracted for a moment."

The lady of Winterfell gave her a kind smile, a knowing look in her blue Tully eyes. "I'm sure." She replied softly as Verena's gaze drifted back to the dozens of people currently filling Winterfell's great hall. "Winterfell is very different from your home I presume?"

"Yes." Verena replied, the thought of Strongsong filling her with a mix of bitterness and longing. "Truthfully I'm not used to being around so many people."

Lady Stark fixed her with another sympathetic smile. How scared Verena had been that her betrothed's mother would not take favorably to her and yet she seemed to be the kindest of all of the Starks so far. Perhaps she related to the feeling of being abandoned in a strange new place and told to marry someone she did not know. Both of them destined to be Starks due to their fathers' decision. She related more to Lady Stark that she had first thought.

"I remember how scared I was when Ned first brought me here." Lady Stark's vulnerable honesty surprised her and Verena could say nothing but nod politely. "But I learned to embrace the North and love my husband and our children, as I'm sure you will too in time."

Lady Stark's pointed gaze towards her eldest son as she spoke to Verena was not lost on her. Verena wanted desperately to look away but felt it would be terribly rude. She couldn't avoid her betrothed's existence forever.

He was sat amongst the young men, further down at the front table. He was joking raucously with them and let out a loud barking laugh as he pushed the shoulder of a dark haired boy sitting next to him. Verena hadn't had a chance to speak to him aside from their words of greeting when she first arrived. Immediately after that encounter, Lady Stark informed her that they would be holding a small feast on her behalf later that night if she wished to freshen up from her journey. Though of course she insisted that she did not need such a display for her arrival both Lord and Lady Stark insisted and she was carted away by her two handmaidens to the bedchambers that had been designated as hers.

She chose to stay in her dark green dress, it was one of the nicest she owned and though she would deny the sentiment it was truly her favorite. Pippa and Lolys worked for hours to perfect her hair into a traditional northern style. Verena had to admit that they did do a very good job and she actually liked the three braided plaits that formed intricate dark crowns around her head.

Nervously, she was now most likely ruining her handmaidens' hard work as she anxiously tugged on a black strand of hair that had fallen down in front of her face as she continued to watch her future husband interact with the boys around him.

The boy on the right of Robb was Theon Greyjoy, Lolys had said as much when Verena inquired to her who the boy standing behind Robb during their introduction was. Apparently her petite blonde handmaiden knew the names of all of the men she found appealing. Verena herself knew enough to know the story of how the young Greyjoy was taken by the Stark's as a ward after his father's failed rebellion. The dark haired youth was truly very handsome but her handmaidens budding infatuation with him worried Verena. His cocky smile and arrogant laugh alerted her to trouble, though Lolys, who was currently sitting across from Sansa and her friend Jeyne Poole, was staring unabashedly at the boy did not seem to notice.

On Robb's left was another young man, seemingly the same age as the other two, whom she was not introduced to. He was leaner and taller than Robb and had dark brown hair almost the same shade as her own. His eyes looked black from Verena's view, though the moment he made eye contact with her she abruptly looked away. She was certain that she saw him start talking to Robb out of the corner of her eye, obviously to tell him he caught her staring their way. Seeing Robb himself turn to look at her she curtly turned her heard the opposite direction towards Lady Stark again and struck up conversation with her.

"Who is the dark haired boy to the left of Robb?" Verena inquired. She felt it was an innocent enough question, certainly it would be expected of her to know the members of Winterfell's household, but the expression that appeared on Lady Stark's face made Verena wish she had remained silent.

A deep-seated frown formed on the older woman's face as she pointed a scowl in the direction of the boy. Verena felt a twinge of pity as he looked away, leaving only Robb to look questioningly at his mother.

"That is Jon Snow." She said in short clipped tones. "He is Lord Stark's bastard."

The tone of her voice indicated that Jon Snow was obviously not a favorable subject. Verena felt her brows furrow in something akin to resentment.

That word, _bastard_ , brought up bitter memories for Verena as well. Memories of her father's betrayal to her mother, of a shameful little boy who had taken everything that was rightfully hers. Stone. Snow. It made no difference; the word held as much disdain for Verena as it seemingly did for Lady Stark. She felt inkling of disappointment as she regarded Lord Stark talking to some of his banner men at the front of the hall. Lord Stark was renown as one of the most honorable men in Westeros, yet he too had abandoned his vows and gave rise to a shameful bastard. Verena had a hard time believing it. With a small huff Verena resumed a polite conversation with Sansa and her friend Jeyne about the formation of her green dress and tried to ignore the prying feeling the mention of bastards had made resurface.

* * *

Thankfully Lady Stark seemed to hold no ill will towards Verena after her prying inquiry and the rest of the feast went as pleasantly as the first. She spent most of her time getting to know Sansa, the other Stark girl having run off to join Robb and the rest of boys earlier in the evening. She found Sansa to be sweet, though her adoration for the prospect of Verena and Robb's upcoming marriage filled Verena with the feeling that perhaps she was too fixated on love for her own good.

Once the feast was coming to a close Verena couldn't help but release a sigh of relief. Though it was very enjoyable, and the Stark were kinder than she could have ever hoped for all Verena wanted to do was be alone. It had been a long day filled with forced niceties and now all she wanted to do was sleep and lament the loss of her home.

Getting up from the table she wished the Stark's around her good night and walked to the door leading out from the great hall. Verena ran a hand through her dark hair at the comforting feeling of being alone when she heard the door she had just passed through close behind her.

Immediately whipping her head around to see who had followed her Verena was met with the face of Robb Stark, giving her a shy and slightly coy smile. Immediately Verena looked down at her hands.

"My lady." His deep voice rang out into the empty hall as he walked closer to her. "I was wondering if I could accompany you back to your chambers?"

Verena raised a dark eyebrow in suspicion. She fought off tart replies of not needing to be shown how to go to her room and sarcastic remarks inquiring if Lord or Lady Stark had put him up to this. Instead she hesitantly met his eyes and nodded.

He put out his arm for her take and she apprehensively latched her own through his. "I genuinely do not think I would be able to find my way back to my chambers on my own." She heard herself saying. "So I guess it is a good thing you came to escort me."

This earned a laugh from him and Verena was shocked that she didn't find the sound unpleasant. How long had it been since she had even heard a young man's laugh. Her father certainly never laughed and there were never any men her age around Strongsong. She had never realized how lonely it was there till she arrived at Winterfell…

"I regret that we were not able to speak more at the feast." He said looking down at her. Had Verena ever been this close to a man before. She did not think so. He was taller than her, her head coming up to his chin requiring him to look down as he spoke to her.

Did she say that her avoidance of him during the feast had been entirely on purpose? Strangely her usually indifferent retorts that she used with everyone did not seem to suit this situation. They were to be married one day; there was nothing she could do about that, she tried to remind her self. It was idiotic to go about refusing to communicate with the man.

She found her self saying nothing, yet Robb did not seem off put by this as they continued to walk through the empty halls of Winterfell. Strange these were the same halls that she had observed as being bustling and yet now they were vacant for them. The same retort of asking whether someone had indeed planned this little escort played on her lips but she kept them closed.

They reached the door to her chambers though the walk there hadn't been awkward, thanks to Robb's expertise conversation. He was obviously well trained to be lord some day. She let go of his arm as she faced him, her back to the door and her hand grazing the knob.

"Thank you for walking me, my Lord." She replied delicately. She tried desperately to not appear so apathetic, she wanted him to not find her completely impassive.

"Robb please, Verena." He said tucking the dark strand of hair she had pulled out behind her ear. "I do hope to get to know you better." He said genuinely, a small bashful smile lifting his lips. "Perhaps after my training tomorrow I could show around the rest of Winterfell."

Surprisingly Verena found herself looking forward to that idea, and nodded before slinking behind her bedroom door with one last book at the russet haired boy standing on the opposite side.

 **A/N: There's chapter 3! Sorry it took a few weeks to upload the next chapter but I've been quite busy. Don't worry though I already have most of chapter 4 written so it should be up very soon. So we finally got some Robb and Verena interaction and Verena's impression of Jon Snow (don't worry she hopefully will end up overcoming her bastard biases.) Please leave a review and tell me if you like it, it's the thing that motivates me to write more for you so please!**

 **Also thank you to everyone whose reviewed already and favorited and followed this story, you guys are fantastic thank you so so so much! I plan to respond to all my reviews to be able to interact with you guys more too!**

 **RedRam88: yes I think that is true and very in character for them but I intend to have a very unique spin on that dynamic so I hope you'll keep reading and find out :)**

 **guest: thank you so much! I'm really glad you like Verena, I was wondering about people's feelings about her**

 **Chaotically Magnificent: Me too! and absolutely the introduction of an added character is always very interesting and it will certainly effect the outcome of certain things! thank you!**


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